Grass mowing machines with rotary cutting blades under a mower deck may have a hydraulic motor mounted on the deck. For example, grass mowing machines for large or commercial mowing applications such as parks, golf courses, highway medians and athletic fields may have one or more rotary cutting blades under each deck, and a hydraulic motor mounted on the top surface of each deck. These machines may include several mower decks extending from or linked to a frame propelled by an internal combustion engine or other power source.
A hydraulic motor mounted on a mower deck may be connected through hoses or conduits to a hydraulic pump that circulates pressurized fluid to the motors. The shaft of each hydraulic motor may be connected by pulleys and belts to vertically aligned spindles attached to blades under the deck, or directly to the blade spindle or shaft.
To mount a hydraulic motor on a mower deck, a lower surface or base of the motor may be bolted directly to the deck, or bolted to a plate which is then attached to the mower deck. Typically, mower decks that cover two or more rotary cutting blades use a plate that may be spaced one to three inches over the top surface of the mower deck. The spacing may provide necessary clearance for pulleys and belts that interconnect the motor drive shaft and blade spindles. Additionally, to provide clearance, one or more supports may be attached to the top surface of the mower deck, and may extend several inches above the deck's top surface. The plate may be bolted to the support structures.
Hydraulic motors vibrate during operation. When a hydraulic motor is mounted on a mower deck, the vibration of the motor may excite resonance of the mower deck, producing high noise and sound power levels.
There is a need for a low cost mounting assembly for a hydraulic motor on a mower deck that can reduce the excitation of resonance of the mower deck and high noise levels. There is a need for a mounting assembly that isolates, reduces or attenuates noise caused by vibration of a hydraulic motor on a mower deck of a grass mowing machine.